Have you set your Goals for 2011?

Did you attain your Goals for 2010?

Have you set your Goals for 2011?

Although there are many people more versed on the creating, tracking and focus of goal setting…I do believe in having and attaining goals, and I believe that those who do likewise will have a significant increase in their success. I’m going to give you my views, not as an authority on goal setting but as a person who has seen the effects having goals provides. It is my intention to help those without goals to see how important they are and to help those with, to continue in their pursuit of setting and achieving goals.

One of my favorite sales managers I’ve worked with gave the classic December “Goal setting meeting” every year and since he has passed on, I would like to dedicate this post to him.

Larry was very “New England” in nature and presented things in a “here’s the facts” manner, which made him hard for some to take and easy for those like me to understand. I say this because I believe that you need to be brutally honest with yourself when it comes to goals and know both what they are and the work needed to achieve them to have any real success as a goal setter.

To get things started, Larry would question everyone in the room as to what goals they had attained and which ones they fell short on for the current year. Next Larry would highlight a few goals of his own, both successes and failures. You see, if you hit all your goals have you really set worthy goals? I for one think anyone who tells you they have reached all their goals is either lying or doesn’t have the right goals. Balance is key to life and part of that balance should be setting goals that make you reach beyond comfort or what you know you can achieve. Sometimes that balance means falling short or even failing momentarily before dusting yourself off and starting back on your path to success.

Why do we need goals?

I hope you’re not reading this and asking this question, but if you are…goals are important to keeping us moving forward. Goals are the fuel that keep winners winning and help those that have never won strive to win. Goals for anyone with a commission income are an absolute necessity to our survival. Without goals, people go through life hoping, wondering, praying and just letting life take it’s own course. All of these things are complacent actions and say that we don’t have any control in what happens in our lives. Goal setters conversely are action takers and rule their life with planning, tracking, methodical work and constant course corrections in order to attain the life and goals they want.

There are many great resources for in depth goal training and I recommend that anyone serious about their life read and listen to goal setting material on an ongoing basis. Some of my personal favorites are Brian Tracy, Zig Ziglar and Grant Cardone (great for us car guys). These are just a few and there are many more great writers and speakers that you can learn from.

One of the lessons that are taught by all who teach goal setting is that you must have clearly defined, written goals. Daily writing of these goals in a positive, first person manner as though you have already reached that goal is also universal for goals trainers. As an example, if one of your goals is to make more money you shouldn’t just write down “I want to make more money” it needs to be written as “ I make X amount of money (hourly, daily, monthly etc…)” In order to achieve our goals our mind needs to believe in them and this technique does just that.

I hope to have everyone at least thinking about goals and how they determine your success.

I will leave you with a couple of my own goals both attained and fell short of for 2010 and some for 2011 that I don’t intend on losing site of. One goal that I hit was to read 10 business books this year, although I do read this was a hard goal for me but one that got checked off. One of the goals I fell short on was to exercise weekly, I had good intentions and even blocked out the time in my Blackberry to make it happen but lacked the commitment and came up with all the normal excuses of why this didn’t happen. So for 2011 the exercise goal is back on and since I’m writing it here for all to see it should be harder to let slip. I also will be reading 12 books in 2011 and for work we will collectively be the number one retailer of certified used Toyotas in the Boston Region for 2011….you read it here first!

Have you begun your 2011 goal list yet or do you keep a running list?

Did you attain your 2010 goals?

What has been your best methods of setting, tracking and adjusting your goals both personal and professional?

About the Author

Comments

What a great reminder and great timing! I was just reading the Sales Bible again by Jeffrey Gitomer this week and he was talking about Post It Note goal setting (I summarize it here http://www.cinchcast.com/autotraining/134837)

After years in sales and management I have to say that the biggest reason people don't reach their goals: THEY DON'T WRITE THEM IN A PLACE WHERE THEY WILL SEE THEM EVERY DAY.

Thanks so much for the reminder of the importance of having written goals. Now I need to put mine where I will see them every day too 🙂

Great reminder and I firmly believe in goal setting. Many car dealers need help setting those goals since there are so many choices out there in the midst of great change in the automotive industry.

That is one of the main reasons why I am hosting the 2011 Digital Marketing Strategies Conference (http://www.digitalmarketingstrategies.org). I have pulled together some of the best minds and coaches in the industry to help car dealers set goals for 2011.

Great article Craig. Ive been one for setting goals for several years now and since setting and placing a focus on my personal goals, ive no doubt achieved much more in life. I do need to do a better job at focusing on smaller goals to achieve larger goals. I have found when you have goals, break then up into smaller tasks. Many times larger goals can become overwhelming and difficult to achieve. Breaking them up into smaller tasks and placing a time line to accomplish each task makes it a lot easier to reach your goals.

Keeping your goals in front of you all the time really helps. This is something I need to remind myself to do. I also like the principles that "The Secret" teaches. Sorta of the same principle.

I have been working on my goals for 2011 over the last few days, personal and professional. It`s going to be a great year for me and one with several goals that I`m setting out to accomplish.

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Editors

Jeff Kershner

I’m the founder of DealerRefresh. I got my start in the dealer business when I was 18. From there I've worked throughout several departments within fixed to variable ops. Whether it’s managing the desk, perfecting sales process or studying online marketing and media trends, I absolutely love this business and the challenges it brings. On top of keeping up with DealerRefresh, I consult with dealerships and key industry businesses. My passion has been and continues to be helping dealers leverage new media to sell and improve customer service.

Alex Snyder

2019 marks Alex's 30th year in the car business. In that time he has had a front-row seat for the rise of the Internet and has been working to bring the online and offline dealership experience closer. Whether you knew him from his life at Checkered Flag or his years with Dealer.com/DealerTrack/Cox Alex has remained an opinionated DealerRefresh contributor who enjoys nothing more than to poke at the unsaid truths in our industry. He also helped found FRIKINtech.